ZeroPlastic Kelaniya Launches Green Shift Banana Fibre Workshop for Sustainable Entrepreneurship

The ZeroPlastic Movement, University of Kelaniya, carried out Project Green Shift, an initiative organized under its Sustainable Partnership Avenue. The project was designed to promote sustainable entrepreneurship by exploring the potential of banana fibre as an eco-friendly raw material for product manufacturing, in collaboration with a local banana fibre entrepreneur.

The purpose of Project Green Shift was to connect university undergraduates and local trainees with practical knowledge about sustainable production methods. By working alongside an established entrepreneur in the banana fibre sector, the initiative sought to demonstrate how locally available natural resources can serve as alternatives to conventional materials, including plastic-based products.

The project included a hands-on experience workshop that provided participants with direct exposure to banana fibre extraction, processing techniques, and product manufacturing. Volunteers and trainees were able to observe and take part in the practical stages of working with banana fibre under the guidance of the local entrepreneur. In addition to the workshop, a documentary was produced to capture the entrepreneur’s journey, covering the production process, machinery used, challenges encountered, and potential business opportunities within the sector.

The workshop brought together ZeroPlastic volunteers from the University of Kelaniya alongside local trainees at the entrepreneur’s workstation. Through the session, participants gained a working understanding of how banana fibre can be used to create functional products. The project also served as an opportunity to introduce the ZeroPlastic Movement, its values, and its broader vision to the local community and trainees who joined the session, particularly in promoting plastic-alternative craftsmanship in rural areas.

The initiative provided a practical platform for young people to learn about sustainable raw materials and consider entrepreneurial poss…